Sunday, 4 January 2015

Sweet lusciousness: Caramel pudding

This is comfort food that is easy and indulgent. It does take a while to cook and be ready to eat, but actual time spent preparing the dessert is barely ten minutes. I like it served cold, but you can serve it warm or at room temperature too.

Caramel Pudding

Serves 4

4 eggs

1 tin condensed milk

vanilla extract

4 tablespoons sugar

water

Beat 4 eggs until frothy. Add the contents of the tin of condensed milk into the eggs, together with the vanilla extract. Half fill the tin with water, swirl it about to get the last bits of the condensed milk from the tin and add to the eggy mix. Mix well.

Place the sugar in a small saucepan. Set it on a gentle heat with a little splash of water. Don't stir. Just let the sugar be until it starts to melt and caramelize. Give the pan a swirl, to ensure that the colour remains even. Once the caramel has reached a light amber colour, turn off the heat and pour the caramel into a heatproof bowl that can hold all of the milk mixture in it. (You could also make this in individual ramekins but I prefer to make it in one single bowl.

Fill your steamer with water and place the bowl inside it. Fill the bowl with the egg and milk mixture. Cover the steamer and steam for about 45 minutes. The pudding should be set. Remove from the steamer and let it cool. Then chill for a couple of hours before serving.

You can also cook the pudding in the oven. To do this, half fill a large roasting tray with water and place the pudding bowl (or individual ramekins) in the tray. Cover the whole thing tightly with foil and place in a hot oven for about 45 minutes.

To serve, run a sharp knife round the inside edge of the bowl/ramekins, to ensure that the pudding will loosen from the sides. Upturn it onto a serving plate. The caramel will flow a little but I like the pudding to stand in a little pool of caramel. Enjoy!

Welcome!

I am many things, depending on who you ask. Mother of two school-going kids. Wife of CSI-ing forensic scientist. Nerdy academic. Permanent day dreamer. Lover of nature. Learner of photography. Seeker of patience. Celebrator of simple joys.

And always, always, obsessed with food.

One of the things that bring me joy is cooking - especially, cooking wholesome meals to share with the people I love.

This little space is my culinary photo journal - a way of documenting my eternal obsession with food and sharing some of my recipes.

Enjoy your visit!

Common spices in my kitchen

My Kind of Food

My pantry is filled with a vast range of spices and these I use to tweak almost every recipe to make it uniquely mine. A spoonful of mustard and a dash of chilli powder add oomph to a basic mac and cheese. A sprinkling of whole cumin seeds into beaten eggs make a great addition to omelettes. A cup of tea isn't complete without a cinnamon stick, a few cloves and a couple of bruised cardamom pods.

I aim to cook simple, wholesome meals most of the time, with a few decadent treats added in to keep things interesting.

Spices can be fiery or fragrant

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I welcome all comments and questions. Feel free to contact me at asprinklingofspice@gmail.com or viaFacebook.

However, if it is a query regarding a specific post on the blog, the best way of contacting me would be to leave a comment on that post. I aim to respond to all questions and comments as soon as I can.